In 2015, work began to unearth Roman mosaics found in the foundation excavation of a construction site.
The mosaics were discovered in the Kadirli district of Osmaniye province in southeastern Türkiye.
The floor mosaics in the foundation of the Roman villa include animal motifs, as well as depictions of seasons and various mythological characters.
The area, which was declared a protected area by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in 2018, was used as a monastery during the Roman period. Today, the Ala Mosque is located there.
Osmaniye Provincial Director of Culture and Tourism Burhan Torun said that in the first stage, mosaics with animal figures were reached, and in the following process, the mosaic area with seasonal depictions was reached.
When the archaeologists went down to a depth of 2 meters, they came across the character of Aeneas, the person who came out of Troy, went to Italy and founded Rome, the founder of Rome, and Dido (the queen of Carthage) right next to him.
Torun said the mosaics unearthed are close to Zeugma in Gaziantep in terms of period. He said that the high quality of the workmanship used in the mosaics and the use of blue and yellow colors in the mosaics show that there is a mosaic floor area of equal quality to Zeugma.
The remains of the villa with Roman floor mosaics are followed by water channels.
Stating that a grave stele and a hearth were also found in the region, Torun said, “It seems that other structures were built here in the 5th and 6th centuries after Christ. ” he said.
Cover Photo: Muzaffer Çağlıyaner/AA
